The sectors and places you’re most likely to find a job in SA
The ManpowerGroup’s Employment Outlook survey for the third quarter of 2017 paints a bleak picture for job prospects in South Africa, with employers largely looking to hold on hiring new workers.
The survey, which asked 750 employers about their hiring prospects for the third quarter of 2017, found that the vast majority of companies – 83% – did not have any plans to make staff changes in the coming months.
9% of employers said they were anticipating an increase in staff levels, while 7% expected to decrease their staff levels.
The stagnant employment sector is bad news for job seekers, especially on the backdrop of the country’s unemployment rate hitting a 14-year high of 27.7%, year-on-year (adjusting for seasonal variations), with the country’s year-on-year employment prospects down 4%.
“As both global and local economic uncertainty continues, many businesses remain cautious about increasing staffing levels,” said Lyndy van den Barselaar, managing director of the ManpowerGroup SA.
“South Africa faced two economic downgrades in recent months, which further demonstrates market uncertainty, and which has resulted in businesses being more cautious in their spending and hiring activity.
“This is reflected in the fact that the majority of local employers said they anticipated no change in staffing levels for the upcoming quarter.”
It is not all bad news across the board, however, as the employers who indicated they were hiring are spread across various sectors and across the country.
According to ManpowerGroup’s data, employers in 8 of the 10 industry sectors expect to increase staffing levels during the coming quarter.
- The strongest labour markets are anticipated in the Electricity, Gas & Water Supply sector and the Finance, Insurance, Real Estate & Business Services sector, with employers in both sectors reporting Net Employment Outlooks of +10%.
- A moderate hiring pace is forecast for the Wholesale & Retail Trade sector, with an Outlook of +7%, while the Outlook for the Construction sector is +5%.
- Employers in two sectors report uncertain hiring intentions, with Outlooks of -1% reported in both the Agriculture, Hunting, Forestry & Fishing sector and the Mining & Quarrying sector.
Regionally, employers in all five regions anticipate an increase in staffing levels during 3Q 2017.
- KwaZulu-Natal employers report the strongest hiring prospects with a Net Employment Outlook of +7%.
- Elsewhere, Outlooks of +6% and +5% are reported in the Western Cape and Gauteng, respectively.
- Employers in both the Eastern Cape and the Free State report cautious hiring intentions with Outlooks of +1%.
Employment prospects are the greatest in large businesses (250 employees or more), with micro businesses (less than 10 employees) and medium businesses (50-249 employees) also expecting staff increases.
Small business (10-49 employees) owners expected no hiring or firing.
“As water shortages continue to plague parts of the country, individuals and businesses are investing in systems and technologies that enable them to save water, and lessen their environmental impact,” said van den Barselaar.
“This means that those individuals and organisations who are creating, installing, and maintaining these kinds of systems and technologies are more than likely experiencing an increase in demand, and are therefore looking to hire.”
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